EU ministers favor negotiated solution

The EU Council of Ministers will support the mediating Troika’s efforts to reach a “negotiated solution” for Kosovo. This has emerged from a draft conclusion seen by journalists. EU ministers favor negotiated solution Ahead of a meeting in Brussels on Monday, according to the Portuguese EU presidency, EU Troika representative Wolfgang Ischinger will inform foreign ministers on the progress of the talks. The ministers are expected to give Ischinger their “full support.” The diplomat will update ministers on the Troika’s plans just prior to the next round of talks with the Belgrade and Pristina teams, to be held the next day, also in Brussels. EU sources are still declining to comment on statements coming from certain sources in Washington pertaining to Ischinger’s supposed idea of “neutral status” for the province. Diplomatic sources in the EU insist that it is still too early to talk of the diplomat’s “proposal”, still less of a Troika proposal, given that, in the event, such a proposal would have to receive the backing of both the U.S. and Russian representatives. During Monday’s meeting, there is certain to be talk of measures to be taken after December 10, the deadline for submission of the Troika report to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. The Council of Ministers will also ask for the negotiating process to be accelerated, bearing in mind the looming deadline. Meanwhile, the Troika’s Russian representative Aleksandr Botsan-Kharchenko has denied that the Troika is proposing “neutral status”, adding that it had not agreed upon any option for status. Botsan-Kharchenko told daily Vecernje Novosti that, ahead of the next round of talks, the Troika was considering “a whole series of alternatives and proposals to stimulate” the negotiating parties. “These do not include any model for the province’s status, nor has any one model been agreed on by the members,” the Russian diplomat concluded. The Contact Group mediating Troika (FoNet, archive)

EU ministers favor negotiated solution

Ahead of a meeting in Brussels on Monday, according to the Portuguese EU presidency, EU Troika representative Wolfgang Ischinger will inform foreign ministers on the progress of the talks. The ministers are expected to give Ischinger their “full support.”

The diplomat will update ministers on the Troika’s plans just prior to the next round of talks with the Belgrade and Priština teams, to be held the next day, also in Brussels.

EU sources are still declining to comment on statements coming from certain sources in Washington pertaining to Ischinger’s supposed idea of “neutral status” for the province.

Diplomatic sources in the EU insist that it is still too early to talk of the diplomat’s “proposal”, still less of a Troika proposal, given that, in the event, such a proposal would have to receive the backing of both the U.S. and Russian representatives.

During Monday’s meeting, there is certain to be talk of measures to be taken after December 10, the deadline for submission of the Troika report to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

The Council of Ministers will also ask for the negotiating process to be accelerated, bearing in mind the looming deadline.

Meanwhile, the Troika’s Russian representative Aleksandr Botsan-Kharchenko has denied that the Troika is proposing “neutral status”, adding that it had not agreed upon any option for status.

Botsan-Kharchenko told daily Večernje Novosti that, ahead of the next round of talks, the Troika was considering “a whole series of alternatives and proposals to stimulate” the negotiating parties.

“These do not include any model for the province’s status, nor has any one model been agreed on by the members,” the Russian diplomat concluded.